Are Adolescents more Vulnerable to Drug Addiction than Adults? Evidence from Animal Models
Introduction
The article used animal experiments to establish whether adolescents are more vulnerable to drug addiction than adults using adolescent rodents. In the experiment, adolescent rodents were introduced to a place with the rewarding effects of induced drug sensations.Research Article.
The animals are then left alone and their behaviors observed, if the animal on its own approaches the place with drugs, the conclusion is that the drug is rewarding (Schramm-Sapyta et al., 2009). Both animals and human beings are believed to seek rewarding drugs more than non-rewarding drugs among other factors.Research Article.
The study was mainly focused on determining the persistence and extent of the reward of the induced substance. The test was is high-dose sensitive as the induced drugs tended to be rewarding at low and medium doses and aversive at high doses.Research Article.
Question 1
The study’s results indicated that the balance of rewarding and aversive effects of the induced substance on the rodents is reward-oriented in adolescent rodents. The rodent model literature also indicated that an increase in drug abuse reward does not lead to a relative increase in drug intake. Certain drugs and the method of intake significantly determine what age abuses these drugs voluntarily.
The research also established that adolescent rodents coped well with withdrawal effects which safeguard them against compulsive drug-seeking. The study sought evidence from other studies that examined neuronal function. These studies established that there are several age-related effects although no evidence supports the connection between these effects and the vulnerability to substance use disorders (SUD).
The study also found that some factors lead to recreational drug use in adolescents although no evidence was found that links pathology and drug-seeking behavior (Schramm-Sapyta et al., 2009).
Based on the study’s findings, it is evident that drug abuse can be attributed to the reward received from the abuse of that particular drug. For instance, the rodents introduced to drugs went to seek the area where the drug was independent, aiming at getting the reward they received after being injected with that drug.Research Article.
For this reason, adolescents may therefore tend to abuse more drugs than adults as long as the drug has a rewarding effect. Research Article.In the case of withdrawal, withdrawal symptoms vary from drug to drug, the time consumed, and the extent of exposure as per the study’s findings.Research Article.
These factors are analogous to human beings. Therefore, successful withdrawal from drugs among adolescents results in less drug-seeking, as compared to when adolescents are more sensitive to drug withdrawal effects.
Question 2
From the study, drug addiction can be due to different factors. Before dealing with a drug addict individual, it is essential to assess the factors behind their drug abuse, their withdrawal attempts and effects associated as well as the specific drug abused.
For instance, adolescents may tend to drug-seek more than adults based on the reward obtained from a particular type of drug. Due to the rewarding effect of a certain drug, adolescents will tend to seek that particular drug more than the other drugs (Schneider et al., 2012).Research Article.
Also, I have learned that repeated exposure to a certain drug may increase the drug-seeking behavior of an individual. The other factor that needs to be assessed when dealing with an addicted individual is the type of drug administration. For instance, drug addicts voluntarily consume drugs where the most likely method of administration is self-administration.Research Article.
As a counselor, I believe that the decision to seek addiction treatment is not an easy decision that requires great trust with my patients. The importance of therapeutic alliance is to make patients feel free in sharing their addiction behavior and enable them to work together effectively (Kelly, 2015).Research Article.
Using the study above, a counselor can improve their skills in treating addiction among youths in several ways. One is to first create a therapeutic alliance with the patient. Through this, patients will be ready to share any important information that will facilitate their recovery process as they perceive the counselor as trustworthy. The next step is to determine the rewarding effect of the drug consumed by the presented patient. Determining the rewarding effect informs the counselor of the behavior of the individual and establishes a good approach to deal with the addiction behavior. The other skill to apply ba
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